Republican Party of McHenry County wants board to make county a gun sanctuary | #republicans | #Alabama | #GOP


The Republican Party of McHenry County is asking the McHenry County Board to make the county a gun sanctuary in response to a recent state law banning certain types of firearms.

In a resolution passed by the McHenry County Republican Executive Committee last week and submitted to the majority-GOP county board for consideration, the party said it opposes the newest gun legislation, House Bill 5471, passed by the General Assembly earlier this month.

The move comes amid a backlash by gun owners and Second Amendment advocates, including a statement by McHenry County Sheriff Robb Tadelman vowing not to enforce the registration provision of the law.

The new law “is a direct violation of the Second Amendment,” the local Republican Party says in its resolution, which argues firearms allow for common defense and protection from a tyrannical government. It calls on the county board to not support the enforcement of the new bill — which also requires those who already own the newly banned guns to register them — through county funds, appropriations, personnel or property.

The resolution also “demands that the Illinois General Assembly cease further actions restricting the Right of the People to keep and bear arms” and the governor veto any further legislation.

“HB5471 … infringes upon the Right to Keep and Bear Arms of commonly owned firearms by the individual citizens of McHenry County, Illinois,” according to the resolution.


        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        

 

The state ban was prompted in large part by the mass shooting at last year’s Independence Day parade in Highland Park that left seven people dead and dozens more injured or traumatized.

County board members are set to discuss making the county a gun sanctuary during a committee meeting on Jan. 31. Any potential resolution would have to be drafted by a committee member, said county board Chair Mike Buehler, a Crystal Lake Republican.

It is unknown how the resolution sent by the Republican Party could affect a potential county resolution, Buehler said. Any resolution considered will have the chance to be changed or ultimately could fail to move forward.

“We have people present resolutions to us all the time,” Buehler said. “We wouldn’t normally take up a resolution that’s just sent to us.”

        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        

 

Shortly after the state legislation’s passage, county sheriffs across the state — more than 90 — announced they did not intend to arrest gun owners solely over the law’s registration requirements. The new law also began fielding lawsuits from opponents seeking to block it both in federal and state court.

In a letter provided to the Northwest Herald, Republican Party Chair Jeff Thorsen said while he’s confident the new law will be struck down by the state’s courts, “the damage done to local McHenry County businesses will be devastating and possibly irreversible in the meantime.”

“We call upon the McHenry County Board to consider the kitchen tables of those small business owners and employees most directly affected,” Thorsen wrote.

At this point, no draft of a resolution drawn up by a county board member to make the county a gun sanctuary has been made public, and Buehler said he has not seen any draft.

Others, such as county board member Gloria Van Hof, a Crystal Lake Democrat, said if the resolution drafted by the Republicans were to make its way in front of the board, she would vote against it.

Van Hof said she supports the Second Amendment, but in an email, she bolded the amendment’s phrase “well-regulated Militia.”

Growing up in Alabama, Van Hof said, “most of the people I knew owned a pickup truck with a gun rack as a standard feature.” But pointing to recent mass shootings, she said it’s not about the Second Amendment.

“What we’re experiencing now is troubling,” she said in the email. “Law-abiding citizens who want a weapon for safety do not need a high-intensity weapon.”

McHenry County’s upcoming decision comes as several other counties across the state are considering or have already passed similar measures.

Tadelman’s statement on not enforcing the registration provision of the law was met with support from Buehler, who thanked Tadelman publicly during the board’s Jan. 17 meeting for his stance. Some other boards have pushed back at their sheriff’s stance.

Any resolution approved at the committee meeting on Jan. 31 would then go before the full county board at its February meeting.

        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        
        


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